After Testing Almost 100 Models—These 4 Blenders Are Worth the Investment

• Nutribullet Blender Combo: Well-priced, this high-powered blender comes with three (!) jars, making it super versatile. We did find it easy to accidentally make a mess if you unscrew the cup from the blade instead of the base.
• Beast Blender: Whether you have a small kitchen or are cooking for one, this is a great compact blender option with proved performance. However it comes with numerous pieces that require storage.
• Cuisinart Smart Power Duet Blender/Food Processor: This low-profile 40-ounce glass jar has seven blending and processing options that are clearly marked and easy to use. At 500 watts, this is not the most high-powered blender, and if you do overwork the blender it will stop working temporarily until it cools down.
• Zwilling Enfinigy Countertop Power Blender: Not only does this blender look stylish on your countertop, but it also performs well. It didn't receive a perfect score when it made a smoothie though as some ice cubes remained in the blend.
  
• Kitchenaid K150 3 Speed Ice Crushing Blender: Another high-performing blender from KitchenAid that allows you to whirl up a soup or a smoothie in minutes, it has a smaller capacity, which could be a dealbreaker if you have a larger family.
  
• Ninja Foodi Power Blender & Processor System: If you want the option to switch between personal smoothies and blending up party-sized batches of frozen margaritas then this is another great pick from the Ninja Foodi line. In our tests, the blender produced smooth and creamy soups and milkshakes. This does have a lot of pieces that require additional storage, though.
  
• Vitamix E310 Explorian Blender: If a $600+ blender isn't in your budget right now we also recommend this Vitamix that retails around $350 (before additional sales). This model produced margaritas and peanut butter that was just as tasty as the A3500 Ascent Series Smart Blender, but did fall short on some other tests.
  
• NutriBullet Ultra Personal Blender: This little blender packs a powerful punch thanks to its 1,200-watt motor. In our Lab test, it blended up thick and delicious smoothies with great body in 1.5 minutes, but there were still some strawberry seeds remaining.
  
• Breville 3X Bluicer Pro Blender: We love this combination appliance for blending or juicing. The juicer attachment works well and so does the rest of the blender. However, it requires more storage space.

In the Good Housekeeping Institute Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab we test each blender with the same standardized recipes to see how they stand out among the rest. When we test personal blenders, we adjust the recipes accordingly to their capacity. Once we are done putting each blender through Lab testing, we hold onto the best blenders for long-term testing.

Strawberry kale smoothie test: To help mimic how a home consumer would use a blender, we made strawberry kale smoothies. We blend up fresh kale, ice cubes and frozen strawberries using a blender's smoothie preset and to see how evenly blended the final product is, each smoothie is put through a fine mesh sieve.

✔️ Type of blender: For this story we focused on the best full-sized blenders, but blenders come in a few different varieties. Choose the best one for you according to your culinary needs.

• Full-sized: The most common type of blender, great for full-sized recipes and larger families.
• Blender food processor combo: While one of these may cost more than a traditional full-sized blender, it's meant to combine two appliances in one. This type of blender tends to offer more accessories to store though.
• Personal: Great for traveling or storing at your desk for a quick smoothie in between meetings, this type of blender is ideal for smaller families or families where everyone wants a different type of smoothie. Keep in mind you cannot puree a soup in here because there aren't vents like full-sized models.
• Portable: They're cordless personal blenders designed to operate without needing to be plugged into an electrical outlet, providing portability and convenience. However, its battery requires charging, and it typically lacks the power of traditional blenders that connect directly to an electrical outlet.
• Hand blender: For even less storage, an immersion blender can fit in a drawer and be used to blend ingredients in whichever container of your choosing. These are also great for traveling, but keep in mind the blender results aren't always as even as a traditional style blender.

✔️ Controls: Depending on the blender, some offer a variety of presets and functions, while others only offer a few. If you prefer to push a smoothie button and let the blender do the work then look for a model with presets. Another function to look for is a timer if you want to keep track of how long you need to blend for a recipe; some models have this feature, while others don't.

✔️ Blades: While it might seem counterintuitive, better-performing blenders do not come with sharp blades (which tend to dull over time). Instead, they come with strong blades that stand the test of time and are able to pulverize just about anything. This also makes them much safer to clean.

✔️ Size: If you don't plan to keep your blender on your countertop, look for a lightweight model. They're more portable but also more likely to skid around on the countertop when in use. If you want to keep your blender on the counter, be sure to consider the height, as some models are too tall to fit neatly underneath kitchen cabinets. If a countertop blender is too big for your kitchen, consider an immersion blender that’s slim and can tackle most of the same tasks.

✔️ Glass vs. plastic carafe: Glass is heavier, but it won’t retain odors or stain as easily as plastic models. Most high-powered blenders do not use glass jars because they're not guaranteed to be completely shatterproof, but if you really want glass, look for one that’s been thermal-shock tested (which means you can blend ice in a canister that's come straight from the dishwasher). Many of our top-performing blenders have jars made of Tritan plastic and some that manufacturers say are BPA-free, which can withstand high-speed blades.

✔️ Wattage: Blenders with higher wattage tended to perform better, but this was not always the case — the overall design of the blender is more important in determining performance.

✔️ Accessories: Some blender models come with a few personal cups with drinking lids; this is great to look for if you want the versatility of blending up a small batch of pesto or a personal smoothie. Food processor-blender combo models also come with accessories like dough hooks for kneading pizza or cookie dough or discs for shredding and grating ingredients. If you have the space for storage, these accessories can give you even more cooking versatility.

While some blenders can be placed on the top rack of a dishwasher for speedy cleaning, many brands recommend hand washing a blender, especially the blender jar and blade for longevity. We recommend washing your blender jar immediately after use so that ingredients don't get stuck in blender crevices. However, if you do wait, use a bottle brush and warm soapy water to get into the blender's nooks and crannies.

Eva Bleyer has professionally tested all kinds of kitchen equipment, from oven ranges to juicers, kitchen scales and blenders. Eva has rigorously tested almost 100 blenders in the Good Housekeeping Institute in the past three and a half years. As a trained chef from the Natural Gourmet Institute with a background in health-supportive cooking, she has extensive experience using blenders.

Nicole Papantoniou is the director of the Good Housekeeping Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab where she oversees all of Good Housekeeping's content and testing related to kitchen appliances, tools, gadgets and gear. She's been testing kitchen appliances professionally since 2013 and has worked at kitchen appliance companies where she helped develop some popular blenders and hand blenders as well as many recipes for them. She is trained in classic culinary arts and is a professional recipe developer.